Basu: Diebel distortions show principles matter

Oct. 31, 2013
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Chris Diebel

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What a difference a week can make in a political campaign. On Saturday, things were going swimmingly in Chris Diebel’s race against incumbent Skip Moore for a seat on the Des Moines City Council. The ambitious young events promoter had picked up the Register’s endorsement, which said he brought “a new perspective to City Council politics” and could bring assertive leadership on downtown and neighborhood revitalization.

Then came news that Diebel’s campaign fliers appeared to unfairly pin the entire blame for something the council did on Moore. They accused Moore of ignoring past court orders to pay back $40 million resulting from the city’s illegal collection of a franchise fee. “Tell Skip Moore $40 million is a high price to pay for poor budget planning,” it reads.

The problem is, Moore wasn’t even on the council when it voted to impose that fee or when a judge ruled Des Moines had to refund it or when the council decided to appeal the ruling to the Supreme Court.

So this week, people were crying foul. Opinion pieces and letters to the editor are skewering Diebel for being unfair to Moore. By Thursday, letters were nine to two against him. And the editorial page editor says there were more negative ones that he didn’t publish — but no more positive ones.

But Diebel doesn’t seem to be hearing it. In Thursday’s newspaper, he stood his ground, claiming even if Moore didn’t vote for the fee, he had four years as a council member to put aside money for the settlement. Moore has said that would have cut essential services like police and fire protection.

Diebel’s mailings even continue to portray Moore as the culprit. The latest one says, “Skip Moore wants everyone to pay for his bad planning.”

Calling it Moore’s bad planning is really hitting below the belt. It has echoes from last year’s presidential election, when Rep. Paul Ryan, campaigning for vice president in his home state of Wisconsin, accused President Obama of breaking his promise to keep open a General Motors plant in Janesville, Wis.

Actually, the plant closed before Obama even took office in 2009.

I wanted to give Diebel one last opportunity to be a little contrite or even just acknowledge he gets why people thought it unfair to make Moore shoulder all he blame for the franchise fee situation.

“I reject the premise” that the campaign ads are deceptive, he said. “I don’t believe it’s unfair to talk about someone’s record in four years.”

By his logic, then, wouldn’t every incumbent on the council have to be voted out over this? No, said Diebel, because everyone makes mistakes. “Voters have to decide, on balance, have other elected officials done enough for them.” Of Moore, he said, “I can’t point to significant successes that warrant his retention.”

I asked Diebel if he underestimated the premium Iowans place on fairness and civility, especially in a local election. He responded that Iowans Jeff Link and Bonnie Campbell of Link Strategies, which is running his campaign, support the strategy.

There’s a subtext here worth noting. Though the City Council race is nonpartisan, and both Diebel and Moore are Democrats, Diebel is pursuing votes from Republicans and conservative Democrats, and may think he’ll score points with Republicans by sticking it to Moore.

Calling Moore “a lifelong union guy,” and noting, “I’m not hearing negative comments from Republicans” about his fliers, Diebel said, “I’m running a bipartisan campaign that reaches across the aisle, and I think you’re seeing a wing of the Democratic Party who doesn’t care for this.”

One letter to the editor, referring to support for Diebel from the National Association of Realtors, said it “makes me wonder what you [the Realtors] hope to gain from his industry-friendly vote on the council.”

Diebel says that group put out its own flier. But when asked about his relationship with them, he said homebuilders believe Des Moines is a difficult city to deal with compared to the suburbs. City leaders, he said, claim they don’t want the “schlocky construction” found in the suburbs — but he could find a middle ground.

He claims the fliers show he is someone who is beholden to no one and isn’t afraid to “go against the grain.”

I know Chris Diebel a little, and I’ve admired his drive and energy. He could bring a fresh perspective on urban life to a council that has at times seemed stuck in the past. But if he’ll run deceptive ads against his opponent to win an election, would he also smear anyone who went against him once elected? Would he show hubris — he may call it independence — by refusing to accept criticism or try to understand why people are indignant?

This isn’t about Republican or Democratic values. It’s about principles. They matter. My own mind was made up by Diebel’s distorting campaign flier — but in the opposite direction from what he intended.